Talk to Broughton History Society - 9 February 2014 - Page 5

Canonmills

Near the Clock and beside the Bridge over the Water of Leith

Beside the Water of Leith
1 .

This photo was taken from the upper deck of a No 8 bus as it passed through Canonmills, heading towards Goldenacre.

Warriston Road (on the left) leads to Lady Haig's Poppy Factory. Canonmills (on the right) leads, after a few yards to the
New Apartments built in the 1990s on the site of Clark's Stoneworks and, across the road, the Esso Petrol Service station

Beside the Water of Leith
2 .

More signs - including cows leading the way to the car park

Beside the Water of Leith
3 .

Earthy - Fresh Food Shop and Restaurant beside the Water of Leith

I first remember this building as being a ship's chandlers when I lived in Edinburgh in the mid-1960s. It was useful to me as I was then sailing a dinghy from Cramond. Later it was used by a business selling fireplaces. It is now a popular restaurant with a shop selling fresh food. However, I believe that there are plans for apartments to be built on the site.

Beside the Water of Leith
4 .

Earthy - Entrance to the Shop and Restaurant

Beside the Water of Leith
5 .

Earthy - Counter

Beside the Water of Leith
6 .

Earthy - Fresh Bread for sale

Beside the Water of Leith
7 .

Earthy - Wine for sale

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The Railway Yard

Between Scotland Street Tunnel and the tunnel
beneath Rodney Street and Broughton Road

Railway Yard
1.

Railway Yard to the north of Scotland Street

Railway Yard
2.

Railway Yard to the north of Scotland Street

Railway Yard
3 .

North British Railway Loco No.1, built in 1870, emerges from the southern end of Rodney Street Tunnel in 1904

The railway from North Bridge Station in Princes Street to Granton originally ran through the tunnel beneath Scotland Street then through this tunnel.

Clark's Stonemasons

About to close and become a
Christmas Tree Warehouse

for a few years, then to become
Rented Apartments

Canonmills
1 .

Clark, Stonemasons - Outside - 1991

Canonmills
2 .

Clark, Stonemasons - Inside - 1991

Canonmills
3 .

Clark, Stonemasons - Inside - Working at the Lathe - 1991

Canonmills
4 .

Christmas Tree Warehouse - Outside. Not much remains of the roof! - December 1995

Canonmills
5 .

Christmas Tree Warehouse - Inside

December 1995

Canonmills
6.

Christmas Tree Warehouse - Inside

December 1995

Canonmills
7.

The whole building is now being demolished ... - June 1996

Canonmills
8 .

... but the Christmas Tree Warehouse returns - December 1996

Canonmills
9 .

The site, redeveloped as Apartments for Short Term Renting

2006

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T he south side of the road 'Canonmills'

Canonmills is the name of the road that leads east then SE towards Broughton

Canonmills
10 .

Buildings on the south side of Canonmills, where the Esso Petrol Station now stands.

Recollections

Les Braby, Scottish Borders, wrote:

" There was apparently a fire in those tenement s at some stage, and my Father as a boy of 8 or 9-years-old saved his the life of his sister, Mary, by rescuing her, for which he was awarded an Andrew Carnegie Silver Watch."

Allan Dodds, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England wrote:

"I'm pretty sure that the whitewashed building below the landing on the building on the left of this photo was a fish and chip shop. My parents used to send me there to buy a poke of chips for 2d in the 1950s!"

Canonmills
1 1 .

What a lot of blue - and a few bits of red!

Canonmills
12 .

Evening at the Petrol Station - Photo taken with a fisheye lens

There is little distortion in the lorry. car and shop (because most of the straight lines head approximately for the centre of the photo.)

There is a lot of distortion in the petrol pumps at the right (because the vertical straight lines there are close to the edge of the photo.)

Canonmills
13 .

Public Toilets at the Marks & Spencer 'Wild Bean' cafe at the Petrol Station

Photo taken with a lens set to 19mm

Canonmills
14 .

Public Toilets at the Marks & Spencer 'Wild Bean' cafe at the Petrol Station

Photo taken with a fisheye lens set to 12mm

Tanfield

Beside the Water of Leith
at Canonmills

Tanfield Hall and Oil-Gas Works

In 1843, the Ministers walked in procession from St Andrew's Church at the East End of George Street to Tanfield Hall where they broke away from the Church of Scotland to form the Free Church of Scotland. (When was Tanfield Hall built?)

The foundation stone for the oil-gas works beside the Water of Leith at Tanfield was laid by Sir Walter Scott, Chairman of the Oil-Gas Co.

The site was used during the 20th Century for printing works for

Daily Mail and for Mixed Industries

Around 1990, Standard Life built their new Administration Offices

Tanfield House

After occupying Tanfield House for several years, Standard Life sold it. The building has now been refurbished to accommodate a number of smaller offices.

Tanfield
1 .

Tanfield Hall

E ngraving in Cassel's 'Old & New Edinburgh', published around 1890

Tanfield
2 .

Canonmills Loch

The loch was on the site where King George V Playing Fields were created, south of Eyre Place, about 1/4 mile SE of Tanfield

Tanfield
3 .

1987

View over the Water of Leith from Brandon Terrace to Tanfield

Tanfield
4 .

19 93

View over the Water of Leith from Brandon Terrace to Tanfield

This photo was taken from the same spot as Photo 3, but four years later

Tanfield
5 .

1986

Morrison & Gibb Offices beside the Water of Leith at Tanfield

Tanfield
6 .

1986

Morrison & Gibb Foundry, Tanfield

Tanfield
7 .

1987

Looking down from Brandon Street to Croall & Croall Fiat Garage in Glenogle Road

Tanfield
8 .

1987

Morrison & Gibb Building - Tanfield

Tanfield
9 .

May 1987

The back of Tanfield House, before construction on the site for Standard Life started

Tanfield
10.

April 1989

The back of Tanfield House, with the framework for the new office being built

Tanfield
11 .

1993

Tanfield House following restoration - 1993

Tanfield
12 .

1992

Inside 'Tanfield House', Canonmills, Edinburgh - beneath one of the three domes.

Tanfield
1 3.

1993

Inside 'Tanfield House', Canonmills, Edinburgh - beneath one of the three domes.

Window Cleaners at work. The shades on the dome move to offer protection below from direct sunlight.

Tanfield
1 4.

April 1993

Tanfield House - Part of the Rooftop Garden

A Few

Recollections

Eric Sloan, Emerald, Victoria, Australia wrote:

Golden Wonder Crisps

"In the mid 1950s my uncle, Ian MacDougall, worked for the then fledgling Golden Wonder crisp company. There was a factory down Canonmills in a row alongside the Water of Leith.

It had what was like a Heath Robinson machine. I was fascinated by the place. The machine worked automatically, peeling and slicing the potatoes and dropping them into the fat vats for cooking, then out again for drying.

Ian drove a delivery van around the retailers and I used to help him dropping off the tin boxes containing the packets of crisps. Another job was pasting the labels on to the side of the boxes. That was kinda messy. "

Jim Duncan, New Brunswick, Canada, wrote about Heriot Hill Terrace, the street was across the road from 'The Ritz' cinema in Rodney Street.

Street Party

"Here is a photo of a street party held in Heriot Hill Terrace to celebrate the Queen's Coronation in 1953:

Danny Callaghan, Falkirk, Stirlingshire, Scotland added

Coronation

" My dad had brought a television in late - 1952 , a 'Cossor 12 inch' for £64 - a fortune in those days! The price was 64 guineas (guinea = £1.05p) but for cash he got a discount. We were the first people I knew with television.

On Coronation Day, our family and neighbours were invited to watch the Coronation. They had to bring chairs. It was a full house. I remember the chairs being lined up like a cinema and my mother no doubt would have been dishing out cups of tea. "

Eric Sloan, Emerald, Victoria, Australia, wrote:

Tenements

" There was an area of dilapidated tenements, housing some fairly rough characters. I don't recall the name - it was Something Row.

The waste ground there was a great 'Cowboy and Indian' playground . I remember one time there, when I was a captive . This kid from the street had me tied up to a clothes pole and was preparing to burn me at the stake! Somebody ran down for my grannie and she rescued me. "

A Few

Adverts

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18 68

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